Tobacco-press.



PATENTED MAR. 20, 1906.

F. A. BONROE. TOBACCO PRESS. APPLICATION FILED JAN. 16, 1905.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

- No. 815,790. v PATENTED MARJZO, 1906.

' P. A. BONROE.

TOBAGGO PRESS. AP'PLIOATION FILED .TAN.16, 1905.

4 SHBETS-SHEET 2.

No. 815,790. 'PATENTED MAR. 20, 1906,. F. A/BONROB,

TOBAGGO PRESS. 4 urmouxon FILED JAN. 16, 1905.

4 sums-sum 3L PATENTED MAR. 20, 1906.

F, A. BONROB. TOBACCO PRESS. APPLIOATIQN I'ILED JAN. 16, 1905.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 4,

ammo sTAT cs PATENT OFFICE.

, Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented March 20, 1906.

. Application filed January 16,1905. Serial No. 241,279.'

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRANK A. BONROE, a'

citizen of the United States, and a resident of I'OWS.

- tive of one of the parting-plates.

St. Louis, Missouri, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Tobacco- Presses, of which the following is a specification containing a full, clear, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part hereof.

' My invention relates to improvements in tobacco-presses; and it consists of the novel features herein shown, described, and claimed.

In the drawings, Figure 1- is a front elevation of a tobacco-press embodying the principles of my invention as seen looking in the direction indicated by the arrows 1 in Figs. 2,

3, and 4. Fig. 2 is a side elevation as seen looking in the direction indicated by the ar rows 2 in Figs. 1 and 4. Fi 3 is a sectional elevation on a plane paralle with Fi 2 and taken on the llnes 3 3 of Figs- 1 an 4 and looking in the direction indicated by the ar- Fig. 4 is a top plan. view as seen look-- ing in the direction indicated by the arrows 4' in Figs. 2 and 3. Fi 5 is a sectional elevation on a plane paralle with Fig. 1 and taken on the lines 5 5 of Figs. 2 and 4 and looking in the direction indicated by the arrows. Fig. 6 is an enlarged detail plan of the clutch mechanism as seen looking downwardly, as indicated by the arrow 6 in Figs. 1 and 5'. Fig. 7 is an enlarged detail of the compression-chambers, parts being broken away to economize space. Fig. 8 is a cross-section on the line 8 8 of Fig. 7; Fig. 9 is a perspec- Fig. 10 is a perspective of the reverse side of the plate shown inFig. 9. Fig. 11 is a perspective detail showing. the operation of feeding the parting plates to the compression-chambers.

. ig. 12 is a perspective detail of the neans of discharging the compressed tobacco.

Referring to the drawings in detail, the

. main frame comprises the posts 15, 16, 17,

and 18, mounted in vertical parallel positions 'in theform of a rectangle when seen in plan,

the brace 19 connecting thelower' ends of the. posts and 16,1th'e bearing-block 20 u on the center of the brace 19, the feet 21 an 22v supporting the posts 15 and 16, the brace 23 connecting the upper ends of th'e'posts 15 and 16 near their upper ends, the bearingblock 25 upon the brace 23, the brace- 26 connecting-the lower ends of the posts 17 and 18 the bearing-block 27 upon the brace 26, the

31 connecting the upper ends of the posts 17 and 18, the web 32 connecting the posts--17 and'18- near their upper ends, the bearingblock 33 u on the brace 31, the base-plate 34- extending aterally from the feet 28 and 29,-

the bearing-block35 upon the outer end of the base-plate in line with the bearing-block 30, the bearing-block 36 upon the outer end of the base-plate in line with the bearings 27 and 20, the arms 37 and 38 extending laterally fromthe upper ends of the posts 17 and 18, the bearingblock 39 connecting. the outer ends of said arms in vertical alinement with the bearing-block 36, and the brace 40 connecting the braces 23 and 31. V The driving-shaft 41 is mounted horizontally through the bearing-block 36, there being a driving-pulley 42 upon the outer end. of said shaft. The clutch-shifting shaft 43 is mounted in the bearing-blocks 30 and 35,

bearing-block 30 upon the brace 26, the brace parallelwith the driving-shaft 4], and thespur-gear 44 upon-the outer end of the shaft v 43 meshes with the spur-gear 45, said spurge'ar 44 being twice as large. as the spur-gear 45', so that when the driving-shaftmakes one revolution the clutch-shifting shaft will make one-half of the revolution. The eccentricshaft 46 ismounted in the bearing-blocks 25 and 33. A connecting-shaft 47 is mountedvertically in the bearing-blocks 36 and 39.

Bevel-gears 48 and 49 connect the eccentricshaft 46 to' the connecting-shaft 47, anda bevel gear 50 connects the shaft 47 to a bevelgear 51, loosely mounted upon the drivingshaft 41. Acounter-shaft 52 is mounted in the bearing-blocks 20 and 27 in line with the drivin -shaft 41. .=A clutch-block 53 is fixed upon t e outer end of the shaft 52', there being a bearing-opening 54 in the outer face of said clutch-block toreceive the inner end of thedriving-shaft 41 and there being a clutclipinopenin'g 55 in-the outer face of said block.-

The second clutch-block 56 is fixed uponthe 56 in position'to move into ICC A tooth 59 extends from gage the sliding bar 58, so as to connect the third clutch-block to the second clutch; block, bevel-teeth 60 and61 extendingout IIO ' ef sifrid 2 .eerri fii pth rse 1 /9 y-fe h d n 'e *As PPQ t 64, and a cam 68 extends from one side of the cam-wheel to throw the plate 63 in one direction, and a similar cam 69 extends from the other side of the wheel to throw the plate in the other direction, said cams 68 and 69 being directly opposite each other. The oppositely-beveled pins 70 and 71 extend from the plate 63 in position to engage the pins 60 and .61, so that when the cam 68 moves the plate 63 to the left the pin 60 will engage the bevby said walls.

eled pin and move the bar 58 into the opening 55 and connect the shaft 52 to the driving-shaft 41 and so that when the cam 69 moves the plate 63 in the opposite direction the pin 61 will engage and pass on the opposite sides of the pin 71, move the bar 58 to disconnect the shaft 52, and engage the tooth 59, thereby connecting the eccentric-shaft 46 to the driving-shaft.

The angular bar 72 is connected to the posts 15 and '17, and the angular bar 73 is connected to the posts 16 and 18. The inner bearing-rings 74 and 75 are mounted upon the angular bar 72 and 73, said rings being formed of angle-iron, with the trans verse flanges at their outer sides. The outer bearing-rings 76 and 77 are mounted. around the inner bearing-rings, there being a continuous series of rollers 78 and 79 between said inner and said outer bearing-rings. The outer bearing-rings are formed of angle-iron, with the transverse flanges at their inner sides, so that the ends of the rollers fit between the transverse flanges of the outer rings and the transverse flanges of the inner rings. A sheet-metal plate 80 connects the inner bearing-rings, said plate being circular to correspond with the form of the rings and there being -a discharge-opening 81 through said plate at its upper side and in vertical alinement with its center.

The annular webs 82 and 83 are attached to the outer bearing-rings 7 6'and 77, there being gear-teeth 84 and 85 upon the outer edges of said webs. A series of compressionehambers 86 are formed by arranging the walls 87 and 88 in bars between the webs 82 and 83, said webs being rigidly connected Spur-pinions 89 and 90 are mounted upon the shaft 52 in mesh with the teeth 84 and 85, so as to drive the drum containing the compression-chambers, said pinions being proportioned to move the drum the distance from the one compression-chamber to the next at one revolution of the shaft. Pawl-openings 91 are formed through the outer ends of the wall 88'and gravity-pawls 92 are pivotally mounted in said openin s. Pawl-openings 93 are formed through t ie outer ends of the walls 87, and gravity-pawls 92 and 94 consist of wire bent near their centers to form pawl shoulders or teeth, the upper ends of the wires being pivoted and the lower ends of the wires carrying the weights 95 and 96, said weights serv ng to hold the pawl-shoulders yieldingly in the compressionchambers, so that when the blocks or the like pass downwardly into the compression-chambers the shoulders will swing inwardly and hold the blocks or the like in the compression-chambers. Stops 97 and 98 are inserted in the openings 91 and 93 to limit the outward motion of the pawls. The beveled cams 99 extend outwardly from the wal s 87.

The angle-bars 72 and 73 extend to the left and the outer ends of said bars are connected by a brace 100, there bein a bearing 101 at the center of said brace through which the shaft 47 extends, A pair of Z-bars 102 is secured to the outer face of the web 32 in vertical parallel positions, and a similar pair of 2- bars 103 is secured to the outer face of the web 24. A sliding frame 104 is mounted in the way formed by Z-bars 102, and a similar frame 105 is mounted in the way formed by the Z-bars 103. Eccentric openings 106 and 107 are formed through the upper ends of the frames 104 and 105, and eccentrics 108 and I 109 are fixed upon the shaft 46 to operate in the openings 106 and 107, so as to reciprocate the frames 104 and 105 up and down as the shaft 46 rotates.

A reciprocating table 110 is mounted through the opening 111 in the compressionchamber drum, and connecting-rods 112 connect one end of the table to the frame 104 and similar rods 113 connect the other end of the table to the frame 105, so that as the shaft 46 rotates the table 110 will move up and down. Guide-bars 114 are mounted upon the table 110, and the discharge-plunger 115 is mounted between the guide-bars to slide to and fro endwise. Ears 116 extend from the end of the plunger, and a connectingrod 117 extends from the ears.

Guide-bars 11.8 are secured to the inner face of the web 32. Similar guide-bars 119 are secured to the inner face of the web 24, and the compression-plunger 120 is mounted to slide vertically in the Way formed by the guide-bars 118 at one end and the guide-bars 119 at the other end. An eccentric 121 is mounted upon the shaft 46; An eccentric-ring 122 is mounted upon the eccentric. A block 123 extends lon itudinally both ways from angle-bars 72 and 73 and extend upwardly through slots in the flanges. The lower ends K of the levers are connected by-a bar 1.27 ,and

a rod 128 connects the bar to the eccentricring 129 upon the eccentric 130, fixed uponthe shaft 52, so thatas the shaft 52 rotates the bell-crank levers are operated. A crankshaft rod 131 connects the upper ends of the bell-crank levers 125 and 126, and the rod 117 is connected tothe center of this rod 131, so that the discharging-plunger 115 is recip- ,rocated when the shaft 52 rotates.

he channel-bars 139 and 140 are mounted upon the inner faces of the webs 32 and 24 to form a reservoir to receive a stock of the parting-plates, the lower ends of said channel-bars being closed by the stops 141 and there'being a'discharge-opening 142 above each stop,'and said channel-bars are located so that as the 'com' ression-chamber drum rotates a cam 99 wil engage thebottom one of the parting-plates, and move 'it out of the reservoir throu h the slot142, as shown in 11. The c annel-bars 143 and 144 are mounted upon the inner faces of the posts '1 and 17 behind the channel-bars 139 and 1403 to form a magazineto receive a supply of the soft tobacco blocks. I

A plate 145 has ears 146 at its ends, and said ears are pivotally connected to the posts and 17, so that the plate may rock back and forth below the discharge end of the tobacco-magazine. Bell-crank levers 147 are pivotally mounted upon the inner faces of the webs 24 and 32, the upper ends of said le- 7 v vers engaging in openings in the plunger 120,

and connecting-rods 148 connect the lower ends of the bell-crank levers to the plate 145,

so that as the plunger 120 moves up and down the plate 145 is operated to feed the tobacco blocks one at a time to the'compressionchamber.

The tobacco-magazine is filled with soft plu s oftobacco, said plugs being supported in t e magazine by the plate 145. As previ ously stated, the plate 145 is ivotally mounted to rock back and forth be ow the discharge end of thetobacc'o-magazine; but the soft plugs of tobacco are normally supported in the tobacco-magazine by thesaid plate 145 and cannot make their exit until said plate has been rocked. The parting-plate reservoir is filled with'parting-plates, and each of the compression-chambers is filled with wooden blocks, each block being of the thickness of a compressed tobacco plug and parting-plate. These blocks are laid one upon the other to a height permitting the top of the outermost block to be held in position under the gravity-pawls 92; The drum is placed in operation and during the elevation of the plun er 120 a soft tobacco plug is permitted to fal within the compression-chamber 10- cated immediately below the tobacco-magazine. As the drum is advanced one step forward the beveled cam 99 comes in contact with the edge of the lowest parting-plate and discharges the same through the passages 142 formed in thelower end of the reservoir, and said plate is permitted to lodge upon thetop of the tobacco plug in the compression-chamber. At this juncture one of the compression chambers is immediately under the plunger 120. The plunger then begins to lower and comes in contact with the parting-plate upon the tobacco plug and presses the same downwardly, together with I all of the wooden blocks." At this period the table rises and the lowest block in the compression-chamber is permitted to pass within the discharge-plunger and remain therein. The table 1 1 0 is thenloweredand the plunger elevated. The discharge-plunger 115 is then advanced u on the table and discharges the woodenb ocks located therein. The remainder of the wooden blocks, to-

gether with the compressed tobacco plug, re- "main within the compression-chamber. This operation is repeated untilall of the compression-chambers are filled with tobacco and all the wooden blocks discharged in the manner mentioned. After each of the compressionchambers has been filled with tobacco the plugs which were first installed will have had sufiicient time to dry sufiiciently to retain their form. As the machine continues in operation the lower tobacco plug is discharged in the same manner as the-wooden blocks.

The wooden blocks and tobacco plugs are re I to tained in position between the Walls of the compression-chamber by friction, the upper cake being held in position by means of the gravity pawls, and as each compressionchamber passes over the discharge-opening 87 the innermost block or lug is prevented from becoming discharged om the compres sion-chamber by means of the sheet-metal .plate 80.

1. In a tobacco-press, adrum formed with opposite webs having gear-teeth on-their peripheries, and walls between said webs forming aplurality of radial compression -vchambers adapted to retain the compressed tobacco blocks, and means for moving said drum step by step.

2. In a tobacco-press, a drum formed with opposite webs having gear-teeth on their pe- ICC ripheries and walls between said webs forming a series of radial compressionchambers, means for moving the compression-chambers step by step, and means for inserting and compressing the block and discharging a previously-formed block at each step.

3. In a tobacco-press: a drum rotatably mounted and having a central opening longitudinally of its axis; and having a series of compression-chambers arranged radially; means for inserting the tobacco plugs into the outer ends of thecompression-chambers and means for discharging the tobacco plugs from the inner ends of the compression-chambers successively.

4. In a tobacco-press: a series of compression-chambers; a magazine for the soft tobacco; a reservoir for the parting-plates; parting-plates in the reservoir; a reciprocating plunger; means for feeding the soft tobacco plugs to the compression-chambers successively; means for feeding the partingplates to the compression-chambers; means for operating the plunger in the compressionchambers; and means for discharging the compressed tobacco and parting-plates from the compression-chambers. 25. In a tobacco-press: a drum having a central opening longitudinally of its axis and rotatably mounted and having compressionchambers arranged radially; said chambers being open at their outer and inner ends; a plunger mounted and operated to pass into said compressionchambers successively; a discharging-table mounted in opposition to the plunger; means for operating the drum step by step to move the compression-chambers successively; means for feeding tobacco to the compression-chambers and means for feeding part ng-plates to the compressionchambers.

6. In a tobacco-press: a drum having a central opening longitudinally of its axis and rotatably mounted and having compressionchambers arranged radially; said chambers sisaoi being open at their outer and inner ends; and said chambers being adapted to receive and retain a plurality of tobacco lugs under compression a plunger mounte and operated to pass into said compression-chambers successively; a discharging-table mounted in opposition to the plunger; means for operating the drum step by step to move the compressionchambers successively into opposition to the plunger; means for feeding the tobacco to the compression-chamber and means for feeding parting-plates to the compression-chamber;

so that a new plug of tobacco will be inserted into the compression-chamber and the oldest plug discharged at each operation of the plunger.

7. In a tobacco-press: a drum having a central opening longitudinally of its aXis and rotatably mounted; and having compressionchambers arranged radially; said chambers being open at their outer and inner ends; a series of blocks for initially filling said compression-chambers; a )lunger mounted and operated to pass into the compression-chambers successively; a discharging-table mounted in opposition to the plunger; and means for operating the drum step by step to move the compression-chambers successively into opposition to the plunger; means for feeding tobacco to the compression-chamber; and means for feeding parting-plates to the compression-chamber; so that as the compressionchambers are filled with tobacco the blocks of wood are discharged and so that as the machine continues to operate, a new plug of tobacco is placed in the coinpression-chamber and the oldest plug discharged at each operation of the plunger.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in presence of two subscribing witnesses.

FRANK A. BONROE.

Witnesses:

ALFRED A. EIoKs, JOHN C. IIIGDON. 

